Where Have All Our Heroes Gone?

Ray Cotton

We all want to look up to someone, somebody who models a lifestyle
we admire. These people need not be perfect--we know that perfect
people only exist in the comic books--but they should be
individuals who have risen above the circumstances of life to
accomplish something significant. And, we want our heroes to be
above self promotion and climbing on the backs of others. But this
is where the problem lies. In today's world of widespread self-
centeredness, it is very difficult to find those heroes from whom
we can gain a right perspective of the world about us.

Did I say that only comic book heroes are perfect? Even the comic
characters are more flawed than we may want to admit. The comic
books of today hardly resemble the comic books of the past. Today's
comics are often full of violence, sexual themes, and grotesque
imagery.

So where do we go to find heroes? What about our parents? Some of
us were fortunate enough to have parents that we could look up to
as role models in our lives. But, lamentably, many have grown up in
homes that are not at all conducive to establishing healthy role
models.

Author Steve Farrar, speaking at Probe's annual banquet this
spring, related that when he was a student in grade school he
didn't even know what the word "divorce" meant. None of his
relatives were divorced, and the only way he came to find out what
the word divorce meant was when one of his classmates used the word
in referring to his parents. To Farrar's knowledge, no one else in
that school had divorced parents. What kid entering grade school
today doesn't know what the word divorce means? Divorce is epidemic
in today's society, and it is rather difficult to see your parents
as your heroes when their breakup has caused you so much pain and
confusion.

Well, there are always heroes from the world of sports. But have
you kept up on "America's Team," the Dallas Cowboys? From a
tobacco-chewing quarterback to drug-thug linemen, America's
favorite team has become the brunt of numerous jokes based on the
team members' legal and ethical problems. We could also pick on
some prominent basketball and baseball players, as well as other
sports figures, but I think the point is made that finding
upstanding heroes, even in the realm of sports, has become
difficult.

In all fairness, one must admit that there are some great athletes
out there with solid, moral lives and radiant testimonies.

But what about movie stars? The movie industry can make a hero out
of anyone. Since the movie makers have absolute control of the
medium and can make their world of fantasy seem so real, heroes are
"created" right before our eyes, but they are heroes of fantasy,
constructs of the imagination. What this world needs is real
heroes, not some fantasy that doesn't exist except in our minds and
on the silver screen. Movies are wonderful teaching tools, however,
and great lessons can be learned and our minds and hearts can
stimulated by the events and people portrayed. Sooner or later,
though, if we seek to emulate the personalities of the silver
screen, we will fall flat on our faces or be disillusioned when we
see or hear of the actors' true lifestyles.

We need heroes that last, who walk on the earth, and yet have that
something within them that carries them beyond the frustrations and
failures of everyday life. Next, we will begin to look at some
heroes who inspire our better nature and motivate us to stay
focused and faithful.

Heroes Worthy of Admiration

Please allow me to share with you the story of one athlete who is
a hero worthy of admiration. His name is Josh Davis.

Josh, a student at the University of Texas at Austin, won three
gold medals in the swimming relays at the Atlanta summer Olympics.
I guess that qualifies him as a hero to every aspiring swimmer who
wants to shoot for the gold, but for the rest of us it is not the
gold medals that makes him a hero, but what he has done with them.

But let me back up and tell you about the transformation that took
place in Josh's life leading up to the Olympics. This change in
perspective enabled him to handle the pressure of the Olympics and
the race for the gold in a way that makes him a model for a world
so in need of true heroes.

As a young athlete back in high school, Josh excelled in his sport
and was recruited by college swim teams. He chose the University of
Texas where he continued to excel and became a BMOC--Big Man On
Campus. His athletic gifts became his god. But he became aware of
a nagging emptiness in his heart even with all the attention,
affection, and acceptance he was receiving. At first he tried the
world's way to fill the void by filling his life with women and
alcohol, but found that was not the answer.

Josh finally overcame the emptiness in his life when he gave his
life to Jesus Christ. No longer did he need to strive for love and
acceptance through his performance, but found all that in the God
who created him and loved him and accepted him unconditionally.{1}

Excited in his new-found faith, Josh began to witness to others on
campus about his relationship with Jesus Christ. But his zeal
exceeded his knowledge, and many challenges were thrown in his face
about the validity of his Christian faith. But instead of hiding
his Christianity and bringing it out only in the presence of other
Christians as so many do, Josh sought out the help of the Probe
Study Center on the UT campus. There through the help of the center
staff and the materials they were able to provide him, Josh was
able to start a journey of knowledge and understanding to
strengthen his faith. Whenever he came across a charge he couldn't
answer, he would return to the Probe Center to find answers. His
boldness in witnessing increased, and today he is an athlete with
a message to the world, and he is excited about the position God
has placed him in to reach out with the truth of God's word. Josh
is invited to schools, clubs, and other organizations to tell about
his experiences as a gold medal Olympian. He uses his gold medal
status to bridge the gap to a greater reward, that of how we can
all experience a personal relationship with God through Jesus
Christ.

This spring, Josh shared at the Probe annual banquet of the
invaluable help the Probe Center was in his quest to become the
kind of athlete God could use to implant in others a seed of the
truth of the gospel message. It's not the gold medals that made
Josh a real hero, it is how he has chosen to use them. He has
chosen the courageous route by using his gold medals for the glory
of God and the salvation of others.

"In Search of New Heroes"

Some time ago the Dallas Morning News ran some articles on
the search for heroes. One of the articles wasn't too encouraging.
It told of teachers who no longer ask their students who their
heroes are because many of the students have such a hard time
coming up with someone they look up to or admire. Too often today,
when you ask a kid who his heroes are, all he can think of is
someone who has made it to the top with fancy cars and lots of
money. The kids have no real picture of how these "heroes" made it
to the top; all they know is that this individual has what they
hope to have someday. What a sad basis for the definition of a
hero.

In his book, Heroes of My Time, the late Harrison Salisbury
says, "We do not live in the age of heroes. This is not the era of
Jefferson, Lincoln, or Commodore Perry. Nor even of Charles
Lindbergh. The politicians of our day seldom remind us of Franklin
D. or Eleanor Roosevelt. Athletes signing five-and ten-million-
dollar contracts do not resonate as did Babe Ruth."

Today, the media often tries to tell us who our heroes are and that
means celebrities, athletes, and stars of the silver screen. These
are not the heroes we need. Rabbi Jeffrey Leynor has said it so
well when he stated, "The world doesn't run on Magic Johnson; it
runs on all us little heroes."{2}

Fortunately, a more encouraging article was featured on the same
page as the previous article. Titled "In Search of New Heroes," the
article spoke of everyday heroes, ordinary people who became heroes
by their unselfish acts of heroism, like Lucy Narvaiz who
volunteers her skills to help Hispanics and American Indians learn
to read and write, or Eleanor Poe who runs a clinic in the poorest
section of El Paso. These people are not the showy, dramatic type
of heroes, but they exhibit the quiet, often unnoticed kind of
heroism of people who have the courage to do what needs to be done.

The an article is about the television series, "Unsung Heroes," and
the heroes featured on the program were quiet, unassuming people
who can't imagine why anyone would call them heroes. But these
individuals have uncommon courage, and Janet Carroll, the producer,
wanted the viewers to see that. David Walther, Janet's program
director said, "When you sit down and look at it and see people
doing these things, it makes you feel good. It makes you want to
emulate or at least be a better person than what you are already."
I couldn't have said it better myself. What a contrast to the
normal fare we get from the media in shows like "Hard Copy,"
"Inside Edition," and "Hollywood Access"!

As we hear about these unsung heroes' quiet resolve, it makes us
stronger and more determined to do the right thing. We see their
strength and the peace they have within themselves, and we begin to
see the world in a better light.{3}

Home Grown Heroes

Now I want to continue our discussion of heroes by looking at an
excellent book called Home Grown Heroes: How to Raise Courageous
Kids, by Tim Kimmel.{4}

In the foreword to this book, Brigadier General Joe Foss (retired),
a recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, says, "America
needs a new generation of heroes . . . people who are ruled by a
conscience that doesn't take the Ten Commandments lightly who have
a fundamental reverence for their Creator, and a respect for the
people and things He has created."

That's what this book is about, being that kind of person, the
unsung heroes of life who have uncommon courage. Specifically, it
deals with the process of learning to add courage to our faith.
Many people have faith, or at least they say that they do, but it
does not seem to reveal itself in the outworking of their lives.
The problem is the absence of courage and "courage is the muscle
that faith uses to hold its ground." So many people today do not
seem to have the ability to courageously live out their faith. Now
we are not talking about those instantaneous heroes who make the
headlines because they happened to be at the right place at the
right time people you typically read about in the newspapers or see
on TV. I'm talking about those unsung heroes who daily make
conscious decisions to respond courageously to life's dilemmas.
Webster's Dictionary defines courage as:"mental or moral strength
to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty."
Courage is putting our faith in action, adding sweat to our
convictions, doing what is hard to do because we know it needs to
be done.

Kimmel writes about the fact that God has placed a seed of courage
in everyone. It's part of being made in His image. We need to
water, cultivate, and pray over that seed so that it may grow
within us. And remember, even if you've blown it many times, it is
never too late to do what is right. Sometimes it is the courage to
confront a person or situation that you know is not right. Often it
is the courage to forgive when you want revenge. It may be the
courage to turn off the TV when you know you shouldn't be watching
it or to maintain your focus until you accomplish a specific goal.

What about building courage into the lives of those we love and
feel responsible for? Courage is the core word in the word
encouragement. Therefore when we encourage others we are helping to
build courage into their lives. The more someone is encouraged when
they try to do the right thing, the more courage will grow within
them.

Kimmel reminds us that the lion's share of courageous living takes
place in the daily grind, behind the lines, in the lonely places,
among our allies, in our own hearts. Courage is the natural result
of internal disciplines. Courageous living comes from daily,
deliberate acts of resolve. Courage assumes there is a battle to be
waged and won. To live a courageous lifestyle is a choice.

The preceding comments have been attempts to whet your appetite
about this book. Now I'll state it plainly: for a wonderful book
that lays out steps to courageous living, please read Home Grown
Heroes by Tim Kimmel. You'll be glad you did!

Spiritual Heroes

Now I would like us to take a look at our spiritual heroes. Let's
start with the live ones.

It has been intriguing as we have observed the rise and fall of so
many of our spiritual leaders. In Texas we have had our share with
the likes of Rev. Robert Tilton and Rev. Walter Railey. Over in
Louisiana it was Rev. Jimmy Swaggart. Probably the biggest
headlines in the national news have been about Jim and Tammy Bakker
of PTL fame, once popular televangelists. He went to prison for
fraud and conspiracy. She was treated for drug dependency. But the
story doesn't end there. While Jim spent his time in prison
reflecting on his failures and sin before God, Tammy divorced him
and sought to separate herself from the situation. She appears to
have learned nothing from the experience and still tries to keep
herself in the public spotlight by getting on TV shows and running
her own ministry. Meanwhile Jim, after much reflection, comes out
with a book of his confessions. He was humbled and seeks a fresh
start on a new and different foundation. Now I don't know how being
out of prison will stir up the old nature in Jim Bakker and how he
will stand the test of time, but it does remind me of another man
of national prominence who rose up out of the ashes of prison time
to become a spiritual leader among us.

Chuck Colson was not a spiritual leader before his fall, but was
known as Nixon's hatchet man. Then there was Watergate, his fall
from power, his time in prison, his conversion to Christianity and
his courageous road back in obedience to God. Chuck Colson is one
of our heroes today, not because he lived a life without moral or
ethical failure, but because he chose to accept God's grace and had
the courage to admit his sin before God and man and build within
himself, with the help of many others, the personal discipline
needed to become a pilgrim for God in the journey of life.

Jim Bakker seems to have chosen the right path back. Only time will
tell, but God may restore him to a place of spiritual leadership.
Are you prepared to deal with that? If not, how do you deal with
King David? He was an adulterer and a murderer who repented of his
sin and God restored him. Yes, there were dire consequences for his
sin that did not go away, and there will be dire consequences for
Jim Bakker that will never go away. There are probably some past
sins in your life that have resulted in some consequences that
don't go away. But are we willing to chose the courageous path that
can lead us to be the heroes God wants us to be. We may only be
heroes for our children, but is there anyone else for whom we would
rather be a hero?

Heroes are made, not born. We have such a great spiritual lineage
to learn from. Chapter 11 of the book of Hebrews tells us about
spiritual heroes, men and women who put their confidence in God,
like Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph,
Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Samson, Samuel, David, and Daniel. They were
all far from perfect models, but they had the courage to not give
up. God offers to each of us a journey of hope. May God bless your
journey.